Radiohead Take to Streets for Newspaper, Reveal Record Store Day Releases

While releasing their first newspaper 'The Universal Sigh' worldwide, members of Radiohead took to the streets to personally hand out copies in London today, complete with flat-caps and news stand.

Their prop-up stand outside the Rough Trade East record store handed out 3,000 copies to the long queue, while other select stores participated worldwide. More copies will reportedly be available from tomorrow, according to a tweet from Rough Trade.

Pictures of fans holding their papers have been gracing the official website, and one New Zealand site took advantage of their time zone by posting a PDF version of the paper for those who don't live near participating stores. One fan, Alyssa Terrell, sent Spinner pics showing her sharing a moment with Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke.

She said, "I don't think anyone that came out this morning actually thought that Thom would be handing out the Universal Sigh himself. There was definitely an excitement in the air but it wasn't until halfway through the line that I actually realised who it was dressed in a flat cap."

The pressing includes creepy artwork, mind-bending prose from Thom Yorke, album lyrics and short stories from select contributors. It is reminiscent of the booklet hidden in some CD cases for 'Kid A.' Similar in presentation, fans later realised the booklet held lyrics to 'Amnesiac' and even 'Hail to the Thief,' which were released in the following years.

On top of that, the band will also be releasing two new songs for Record Store Day, which will take place on April 16. According to At Ease, the two-track 12-inch vinyl will feature the songs 'The Butcher' and 'Supercollider.' The pressing is rumored to be limited to 2,000 copies, but no official plan has been revealed yet.

In other Radiohead news, discreet launch of their new album in a high-resolution format today could be the new way Radiohead rock the music industry, by offering their new album as high-resolution 24-bit FLAC files exclusively with 7digital -- a move believed to be a first from a major artist on a mainstream music store.

7digital have exclusive rights to sell the album in this format, and are likely to upgrade more of their library in a bid to beat larger stores like iTunes to the market with HD audio. Independent labels such as Warp already offer HD downloads, but not through larger retailers. Whether the move sparks a format war between retailers or not remains to be seen.

Watch the Video to Radiohead's 'Lotus Flower'